Kerry McCullough Placer-Auburn – Basketball

McCullough scored a team-high nine points, including a three-pointer that put the Lady Hillmen ahead for good in a 48-46 Pioneer Valley League road win over rival Bear River-Grass Valley. The following game, she tallied a team-high 16 points in a come-from-behind 52-44 win over Foothill to capture a share of the program’s first league title since 2008. Placer (23-4, 8-2) shared the PVL title with Bear River and Colfax, and earned the No. 4 seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoffs.

McCullough scored a team-high nine points, including a three-pointer that put the Lady Hillmen ahead for good in a 48-46 Pioneer Valley League road win over rival Bear River-Grass Valley. The following game, she tallied a team-high 16 points in a come-from-behind 52-44 win over Foothill to capture a share of the program’s first league title since 2008. Placer (23-4, 8-2) shared the PVL title with Bear River and Colfax, and earned the No. 4 seed in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III playoffs. 

SportStars Magazine: How did it feel to sink the game-winning three-pointer against a rival like Bear River?

Kerry McCullough: It felt great, but it was kind of lucky because it banked in. I think I got some help because you don’t bank in shots like that. It was the second anniversary of (former Placer girls basketball assistant coach) Geno Linarez’s passing, so I think he might have helped it in. It was just great as a senior to be able to make a big shot and help my team win a league title.

SSM: What kind of advantage do you have with such a deep roster?

KM: It’s really nice to have a deep team because we can push ourselves harder and know that we have players coming off the bench to give us an extra spark. We have great players and scorers, but if anyone happens to be off, then there are others who can and have stepped up.

SSM: With a strong finish to the regular season, what is the team’s playoff outlook?

KM: We are trying to focus on the stuff that we can do better, like team defense and crisp passing. If we do what we can do, we should be OK. It was awesome winning league, and whatever we do from here is an added bonus. But we don’t want to stop now.

HONORABLE MENTION

De’Sean Parsons —The Grant-Sacramento senior scored a team-high 23 points in a key league showdown with Franklin-Elk Grove and followed that effort with solid offensive games in victories over Laguna Creek and Elk Grove to close out the regular season. 

Lynette Johnson — The Kennedy-Sacramento senior scored 21 of the Cougars’ 38 points in a Metro League loss to Sacramento. She led Kennedy (21-5, 12-2 Metro) with averages of 17.1 points and 7.6 rebounds per game during the regular season.

Aaron Cameron — Sacramento senior guard scored a game-high 21 points, including six three-pointers, to lead the Dragons to a 73-42 rout of Metro League rival Kennedy. The victory gave Sacramento (21-6, 13-1) its second consecutive league championship and eighth in nine seasons.